VIDEO: Imperial College criticised after investigation reveals lab rats were killed with guillotines

VIDEO: Imperial College criticised after investigation reveals lab rats were killed with guillotines

VIDEO: Imperial College criticised after investigation reveals lab rats were killed with guillotines

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Grabbed: a rodent is carried around a lab at Imperial College. (Picture: YouTube)

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Guillotine: a rodent has its head chopped off in a guillotene. (Picture:YouTube)

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Welfare: the university was told to improve standards of care for animals. (Picture: YouTube)

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Experiments: the animals are kept at Imperial, one of the world's leading research universities. (Picture: YouTube)

Bosses at a top London university say they will take further steps to improve animal care after an investigation revealed lab mice were being killed with a guillotine or having their necks broken.

Animal welfare safeguards at London’s Imperial College have been strongly criticised in an independent report it commissioned after a damning assessment of standards last year.

The university admitted it has “significant scope for improvement” after a committee raised “serious concerns” about standards of welfare of animals used in research there.

A report published by Professor Steve Brown, a mouse genetic specialist from the Medical Research Council, found the university lacked “adequate leadership, management, training, supervisory and ethical review systems” in the context of animal welfare.

The review was commissioned by the college itself after a seven month investigation by the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection (BUAV) last year found animals were being killed using “ highly disturbing” methods - including having their heads chopped off with guillotines - during research there.

After the publication of the latest assessment of Imperial’s standards, Professor Brown said: “Our investigation identified a number of serious concerns on the conduct, management and oversight of animal research at Imperial College.

“The college now has an opportunity to take our findings and recommendations forward. Imperial College is internationally recognised as one of the world’s best research institutes and it is important that this is matched by its standards of animal use and welfare,” he added.

Recommendations for improvements at the university include more staff focusing on animal welfare and better monitoring of the conditions in which animals are kept.

BUAV chief executive Michelle Thew said: “The system overseeing animal experiments in the UK is broken and needs a drastic review, both to end abuse of the permitted licences and to implement the promised reduction in the number of experiments carried out.”

Imperial – which was this year ranked as the fifth best university in the world – said it would “move quickly to implement the recommendations” made in Professor Brown’s report.

A spokesman added: “The college has accepted all the recommendations and has thanked Professor Brown and his committee members for the time and energy they have given to the investigation.

“We accept that there is significant scope for improvement in aspects of the operation, management and oversight in order to become a world leader in animal research.

“The college reiterates its strong belief that the use of animals in research is essential to improve human and animal health and welfare,” he said.